It's no coincidence that these days our feeds on social media and news seem to have had an increase on content related to the Climate Change crisis thanks to the celebration of the COP26 in Glasgow and all the advocates trying to create awareness and drive change on policies that could regulate the crisis.
I don't think I am alone on feeling overwhelmed about the topic, and I don't even know where to begin with it, to educate myself, to filter the information and discard misinformation, to get access to the right tools to drive action aligned and balanced with my beliefs and capabilities.
And on top of that, to keep enjoying the sports I most love, the travelling, the adventures, the family, the comforts of our daily lives. It is personally and professionally conflicting and yet I have this growing discomfort about the topic and about how I'm doing things. I always feel like I could do more, that maybe I don't know enough about the specific subjects to have a valuable opinion that I could share. That I can't complain because I don't have it "that bad", but I want complain and do what I can on this topics for myself and those who can't.
Politics have never been my strong suit and I have always seen them as a very unrelatable thing. I have even believed that I was apolitical and that I had absolutely 0 power on anything, that it didn't matter what I thought, believed or needed because those at the top are moving the strings and making the decisions, and I must admit I have also seen "greenpeacers" and other activists very far from what I could relate to. So I felt stuck in the middle with my own opinions and this deep hope that "everything will sort itself out" and everything will be okay, because I thought there was absolutely nothing I could do about it: If I can't barely keep my life afloat what the hell, I, a very average person, am going to do about climate change, gender or racial discrimination or even about industry systems and structures?
And I think it's particularly funny that I keep thinking this when I am trying to bring a community of women together, when I am trying to spread inspiration, empowerment and knowledge through the experts in all these topics and related to our outdoor and action sports industry, but still every day I think I might be missing something, that it's not enough and that we could do more.
I also think a lot of us are in the same boat, looking at each other and thinking: well I don't know enough about this to make a difference, I could never have such a strong voice, it works out for them but probably not for me. I want to help, I want to be part of it, but I don't know how. Action, change, blah blah blah, but what the f** am I supposed to do that will help at all without compromising everything else in my life that I am working and devoted to?
As I did some research to know what is going on these days, and how we can contribute to it and have a bit more of an overview about it all, I turned my head to the women in our community and industry that I knew have stronger voices and expertise in the climate change topic.
The first person I think of is undoubtedly Lauren McCallum, General Manager of the Protect Our Winters UK and one of the most passionate, talented and just refreshingly honest women I know. I always look up to what she is up to because it helps me understand a lot of these issues, now specifically about the climate crisis and the social and economic implications, but also about discrimination and equality.
We can't all be Laurens, but we can all learn more, get more involved and definitely we all can sure as hell rise the volume of our voice and help the others do the same.
Personally, I have always found the first step to be understanding and education, and this is exactly what POW is enabling but also other agencies, companies and organisations. So with this post my intention is to help others get more connected, aware and even just share resources and things that are happening and available and provide helpful starting points, ideas to invite us all to dig deeper and go as far as you can and want in the topic of climate change and sustainability relevant and more directly connected to our industry.
For this to be any useful it has to be a growing and evolving library, so please comment and leave whatever resources you have, whatever videos, documentaries, conferences you have watched and found useful or whatever books, articles or stories you have read and find particularly helpful, or even initiatives or other organisations that you find interesting.
The beautifully produced YouTube series "Seat at the table" brings up some of the climate crisis issues in depth and unexpected but relatable angles all whilst takin you in a journey through the UK.
I recommend the whole series, but episode 7 specifically is one that features Lauren McCallum (and her dad) in a very vulnerable and totally relatable position that helps you understand there is so much more to these issues in a very honest way.
The North Face have done a strong social campaign using the hashtag #TakeActionGiveHope around COP26 hosting a pannel with brand ambassador and professional snwoboarder Xavier de le Rue, social media manager from Action for Climate Raquel Martinez, and POW's UK Lauren McCallum.
The North Face shared their goals for this campaign and encouraged their athletes and ambassadors to help them get traction by internally sharing this information:
COP stands for the Conference of the Parties aka a gathering of countries with this year marking it's 26th time. Hence the name, COP26.
COP26 lasts for 12 days, Oct 31 to Nov 12. One of the key conversations will be around net-zero emissions targets, policies to help vulnerable communities adapt to the consequences of the climate crisis, and how to pay for it all.
This is being billed as one of humanities collective last chances to slow down global warming as a planet .
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a landmark report, a "code red for humanity” which confirmed that without radical reductions in carbon emissions this decade, temperature rises above 1.5 degrees would be inevitable and irreversible. Right now, the planet is 1.1 degrees hotter than it was between 1850 and 1900. It was a stark warning of what might happen if COP26 doesn’t come through with serious commitments to radical action.
Another amazing woman in our community that I have looked up to for many years is Iris Ritzert and she shared the following documentary link on her feed with the following message and I agree with her. I believe it's definitely worth a watch.
"One of the biggest sustainability controversies within my own reality is winter sports. Driving an hour or more to get to a snow resort, a tour or a contest is part of my life for well over 25 years. Here's a well-worth-your-time short documentary by the Oberalp Group, that's drawing a very realistic picture of the future of snow sports, sustainability but also other important talking points, such as women in snow sports - which was my contribution to this documentary. (Thanks to Snowsports Industries America Maria McNulty for the great interview!)
Other resources that you might find interesting:
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